From an exhibit at the Oregon Museum of Science & Industry
Argon
8 Feb 2010
8 Feb 2010
From an exhibit at the Oregon Museum of Science & Industry
6 Feb 2010
After taking a short break over the holiday season, we’re planning to start recording new episodes of the Planet Argon Podcast.
If you have any topics ideas, please let us know.
5 Feb 2010
Cultured Code, the team behind one of my favorite desktop/iphone applications, Things, has an excellent status page with a flight theme design for their customers.
5 Feb 2010
Clever rebranding of this South African airline. More photos →
21 Jan 2010
As a Kindle owner (and raving fan), I’m curious what Amazon’s strategy is with this move. I purchased the Kindle for what it does well, which is allow me to read books. Hopefully they’ll not dilute the experience of picking up the kindle, turning it on, seeing my recently viewed books, and start reading.
21 Jan 2010
This discussion between Carlos and I took place on Campfire last week. As you can see, our internet connection is now much faster.
One of gripes with our old building was that we only had a few DSL options to choose from. Our internet at work was always sluggish. When we found our new place we were pleased to find out that we could switch over to Comcast Business as an internet provider. We were also able to move our phone lines to them, which means we’ve consolidated three bills into one… and the best part? We’re saving $50/month now.
16 Apr 2009
Okay, not really… but we’re really excited to see the news that Obama has, “highlighted his ambition for the development of high-speed passenger rail lines in at least 10 regions.”
image from nytimes.com
As you know, we’re big fans of traveling by Rail. You can read the article on nytimes.com.
16 May 2007
Let’s face it, there is always work to be done… and if you find yourself in need of a table, a chair, and some free wifi, be sure to check out some of our favorite spots.
16 May 2007
It was just two years ago that I discovered local beverage company, Viso (Visoda at the time), makers of the popular Vigor energy drink. It has since become a staple in the PLANET ARGON offices.
“Its cheaper than a mocha, has more caffeine, and has vitamins so I don’t end up in catatonic state after coding for 20 hours straight.” — Alain Bloch, Rails Developer, PLANET ARGON
Organically sweet, available at our neighborhood coffee shop (and most nearby markets and grocers), and chocked full of caffeine. 300mg, to be precise. You read that right, 300! According to the bottle sitting on my desk, that is the equivalent of 3 cups of coffee. But don’t worry, it’s all organic, so it’s good for you… right? ;-)
Viso beverages taste great and are nothing like regular energy drinks. They’re sweet (but not too sweet), non-carbonated, and full of vitamins. You can also get a sugar free version, called Will. Non-caffeinated varieties available too. You’ll likely see me wandering the conference floors with one in my hand.
Consider this a friendly tip from the locals, if you need a little pick me up that you can carry around in your bag, grab yourself a Vigor and join the ranks of the Portland caffeinated.
“Viso makes me feel alive again!” — Chris Griffin, User Interface Design, PLANET ARGON
11 May 2007
In Portland Revealed: Episode 1, Gary gave a quick overview of some of Portland’s finer points. In this episode, we’ll go into more detail about some of the things to do outside while at the conference. We know at least a few of you are planning on spending a few days before and/or after the conference soaking up the city and surrounding areas that wanted to explore the lovely outdoor parts of Portland.
It’s springtime in Portland and the weather has been great the past few weeks for lacing up your boots, running or walking shoes up and hitting the paths. We’ve kept this list to places within the city limits and easy to get to for conference goers.
It would a crime to not begin this list with Forest Park, Portland’s pride and joy. As Gary mentioned in Episode 1, Forest Park is the largest, forested natural area within city limits in the United States. Since many of you will be taking advantage of our excellent public transportation system, you can actually get to several trails via Tri-Met, both the MAX and by bus.
You could spend days wandering around all of the trails here. A few of us at PLANET ARGON have been known to go hiking and running around Forest Park in the afternoons/early evenings after a nice, long day of working with Ruby on Rails.
Gary Blessington, Director of Design and Development at PLANET ARGON, seen running through Forest Park earlier this week with his dogs
For more information about Forest Park, visit Friends of Forest Park.
Just a quick jaunt from the conference center and you’ll find yourself at Tom McCall Waterfront Park, on the Willamette River (pronounced wil-LAM-met). If you are a runner, try the waterfront run for an breezy 2.5 miles, which takes you down waterfront park, across the Hawthorne Bridge, up the Eastbank Esplanade, and back across the steel bridge. For more information and directions, visit here.
If it’s sunny out, Waterfront Park also makes for a great place to lounge on the grass with a good book.
If you make it farther into SE Portland, you might head over to Mt. Tabor Park, which sits atop an extinct volcano cinder cone. Don’t worry, we’re not expecting it to come back to life anytime soon, but be sure to check out the cinders “near the peak, where a basketball court and outdoor amphitheater are now situated, part of the cinder cone has been cut away, and is visible to park visitors. The remaining cinders were used to pave the nearby parking lot” (via wikipedia). Mt. Tabor is great for picnics, going for a jog, walking the dog, and getting a nice view of Downtown Portland (but you’ll have to make it to the top for this one). You can take the buses directly there, which makes it very accessible and a favorite among the locals.
View of Downtown Portland from Mt. Tabor
Lastly, for those of you looking for a more leisurely walk though a park packed with extra amenities, make your way to Washington Park in SW Portland. You can get there by bus, or MAX, with the Washington Park MAX station being the deepest transit station in North America, at 260 feet below ground!
If the trails aren’t enough to keep you busy, you will not be short of things to do. Washington Park is home to the Oregon Zoo, the World Forestry Center, the Portland Japanese Garden, Hoyt Arboretum, and the International Rose Test Garden, with more than 700 varieties of roses. It’s just about to hit its peak of the season, so all you flower lovers, this is the perfect time! Best of all, the view of downtown from the Rose Garden is stunning, and on a clear day you can get a great view of Mt. Hood.
If you have a lot of free time, check out the 40-Mile Loop and let us know how it is. ;-)
We hope that you all enjoy Portland as much we do!
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